Disney Purchasing Significant Portion of 21st Century Fox

There have been rumors of this possibility of late, but now it is official that The Walt Disney Company is purchasing a significant amount of 21st Century Fox's media assets, including film and television studios, Fox's stake in Hulu, and intellectual properties such as Avatar, National Geographic, Fantastic Four, and X-Men. This deal comes to approximately $52.4 billion in stock, though the value is subject to adjustment and Disney is assuming about $13.7 billion of Fox's debt. Disney is not acquiring all of Fox's properties though, and prior to the acquisition completing Fox Broadcasting networks and stations, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, FS1, FS2, and Big Ten Network will be spun off to a new company. It is anticipated that Fox will try to finish its acquisition of Sky, which will then go to Disney as part of this deal

Of course this deal will need to survive the scrutiny of regulatory bodies meant to prevent monopolies before it can close. According to Bloomberg, Disney expects the deal to close in 12 to 18 months.